Pepper stands about 4 feet tall and weighs just 62 pounds. At the event in Tokyo, the little humanoid offered a traditional Japanese bow to the crowd before chatting with Son, shaking hands and urging him to smile.

Pepper gets feedback from its user via facial-recognition technology and a bank of cameras, audio recorders and sensors in its head. Softbank says that instead of being programmed, Pepper learns how to behave over time.